?Chapter 1302:


    But what Johnson didn’t know was that his words had already reached Catherine.


    Catherine hadn’t meant to overhear.


    She had been simply passing through the garden on her way back from the garage when the sound of voices drew her attention.


    At first, Catherine had intended to quietly leave. But then, she heard Ste question Johnson.


    For some reason, her feet refused to move.


    And then, she heard him say it. He didn’t like her. The words struck like a blow to the chest.


    Catherine’s face lost its color, and an unexpected wave of sorrow and disappointment swept over her.


    She didn’t even understand why it affected her so deeply. By all logic, she should’ve been relieved.


    She and Johnson had supposedly returned to a sibling-like rapport, after all.


    And yet… Her heart felt heavier than ever after she heard what Johnson had said.


    Unwilling to think too much about the matter, Catherine turned away and hurried off.


    Shortly after, Johnson apanied Ste to the garage.


    Ste had an errand to run and had been nning to drive her car earlier. She hadn’t anticipated stumbling upon that moment.


    Once Ste departed, Johnson returned indoors.


    He contemted checking in on Catherine, but after some thought, he figured she might prefer solitude.


    So, he silently retreated to his own room.


    The following day.


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    In the afternoon, Lamont’s phone rang. It was a call from an unknown number.


    “Hello? Who’s speaking?”


    “Hi, is this Niko Shaw’s father?” A man’s voice echoed from the other end of the line.


    Hearing his son’s name, Lamont straightened up slightly, a flicker of concern crossing his face. “Yes, this is Niko’s father. Who is this?”


    “My name’s Roy Cullen. I’m one of Niko’s ssmates and his friend. The thing is… Niko has been missing sincest night, and his phone has been off. I’ve tried contacting him several times. I’m getting really worried, so I thought I’d call to ask if he went homest night.” Roy quickly exined the reason for his call.


    Lamont’s heart dropped. “What? Niko has been missing sincest night?”


    His voice cracked with growing rm. “He didn’t return homest night. I’ve been home the whole time. He never came back.”


    Roy’s tone grew tense. “That’s not a good sign. I’m really starting to think something happened to him.” Lamont’s heart pounded in worry.


    He gripped the phone tighter. “Why do you think that? Do you know anything?”


    “Yeah,” Roy replied. “Niko mentioned he has his eye on a girl at schooltely, but she has been brushing him off. So, he came up with a n to win her over—drugging her and sleeping with her to make her be with him. Last night, he told me he was about to execute his n and said he would surely seed. But now? He’s nowhere to be found. I’m wondering if it’s tied to that.”


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